February 2, 2009

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NATIONAL

OTTAWA'S BEST-KEPT SECRET?

In early September, when Stephen Harper nominated Tom Cromwell to fill a vacancy on the Supreme Court of Canada, he brought the first part of a promised and formal selection process to a sudden and premature end. Cromwell was still supposed to be publicly interviewed by a parliamentary committee before his appointment was confirmed, but the Nova Scotia judge was left twisting in the wind while an election was fought and Parliament prorogued. By PHILIP SLAYTON

WORLD

RACE

It could have been mistaken for a religious pilgrimage. The spirit of the crowds that gathered was not loudly partisan. There was giddiness to be sure, but the overriding feeling was solemn. The sense of History Being Made was on every corner, from the Sunday-best hats and cashmere coats in the crowd to the inescapable commemorative Obamabilia being hawked everywhere. By LUIZA CH. SAVAGE

Business

THIS COMPUTER IS SO ME

The northern countryside of North Carolina is tobacco country. In the Piedmont Triad, named for the three bordering cities of Winston-Salem, Greensboro, and High Point, the farmland is interrupted only by the occasional prefab housing development with names like Hickory Creek and Weatherstone. By STEVE MAICH, LIANNE GEORGE

HOPE

A beard and a stovepipe hat could hardly have made it plainer. Barack Obama now occupies a unique place in American history, but his ascension to the presidency was carefully modelled on a giant from its past, Abraham Lincoln. The 44th U.S. President retraced the léth’s train journey from Philadelphia to Washington, stopping in the same communities to make speeches. By JONATHON GATEHOUSE

INTERVIEW

'Pilots are so involved in managing a crisis that they tend to forget they have 100 people in back in a state of panic’

Q You’re known as the “father of crew resource management,” which is credited with dramatic improvements in aviation safety. Capt. Sullenberger, the pilot who safely landed on the Hudson River, was involved in implementing CRM training at USAir.

MAIL BAG

‘Looking for ways to retain young employees? The answer is simple: respect.’

CANADIAN JOB LOSSES are frightening and largely unnecessary (“The employment storm of ’09 is on its way,” Business, Jan. 19). If we used a little imagination we could gainfully employ all of our workforce. Small, energyefficient, expandable and self-contained homes could be mass-produced in our auto plants.

WORLD

WHITE HOUSE STYLE GLAMOUR FOR THE PEOPLE

In a recent interview, fashion doyenne Donatella Versace identified Barack Obama as the inspiration for her spring 2009 men’s collection, describing his style as that of “a relaxed man who doesn’t need to flex muscles to show he has power.” By LIANNE GEORGE

THE BACK PAGES

PERFORMANCE OF THE WEEK...

São Paulo’s notorious traffic slowed even further recently when 20 women leapt into traffic and onto street signs to perform pole dances. Wearing jeans instead of bikini bottoms to avoid injury from the poles, the women were led by Brazilian dance teacher Renate Wilke, who is trying to promote pole dancing to the level of Olympic sport.

7DAYS

PUTIN PAINTS, A PREMIER PLAYS GOON, ARMANI ACCUSES RIVALS OF PLAGIARIZING HIS PANTS

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has hidden talents (other than judo). Last weekend, one of his original paintings sold for more than $1.3 million at a charity auction in St. Petersburg-believed to be a record sum for the sale of a painting in Russia.

Cover Story

OBAMA

It was a celebration for the ages. On the morning ofjan. 20, at 8:45 a.m., Barack Obama left the historic guest quarters at Blair House, across the street from the White House, and climbed into the back seat of a black Cadillac limousine—an armoured personnel carrier that the Secret Service have dubbed “the Beast.” By Luiza Ch. Savage

January 262009